Norway’s’ Drug Users’ Inject Some Common Sense into Parliament!

Norway’s Drug User’s Day has been arranged every year on November 18 but this year it seemed quite special. Arranged by Arild Knutsen and his companions in The Association for Humane Drug Policies to raise awareness about the issues facing people who use drugs in Norway, this year would see a contingent of passionate drug user activists face their country’s politicians across the table in Parliament – offering opinions and answering questions – all upon invitation by the current Labour Government.

The film shows how drug users in Norway effectively banded together to ask their government to implement heroin prescribing for many of its country’s 10,000 users.

Fully subtitled, the film follows a large group of Norway’s drug users as they put their thoughts and views across to their country’s politicians in an articulate, direct and heartfelt way way, asking simply for the considered implementation of more progressive drug policies that would permit many the chance to live a more dignified life; for is that not their right like any other?

They ask why, when the results from heroin prescribing in neighboring Denmark is so encouraging as to now be expanded, can’t Norway consider a heroin (diamorphine) trial or programme? Why, when more and more European countries continue to collate positive and encouraging data on the outcomes from heroin prescribing clinics does Norway continue to hold back a tool that could provide so many heroin users with stability, dignity, and well being?

Quoted here, Arild Knutsen Norway’s Association for Humane Drug Policies (fabulous name!) gives a short introduction to their film (edited)…”There’s around 10,000 injecting drug users in Norway and we want more harm reduction measures for them. Stop the criminalization of drug users! We also want the politicians to try implementing heroin assisted rehabilitation, like Denmark, The Netherlands and Switzerland (among others) have successfully done.”

He continues to describe the film…”Drug users are rallying to be treated with dignity. The group is invited in to The Parliament. This year by The Labour Party. There, drug users’ show the short movie: “Magnus, a Spring Day” which is heroin user Magnus Lilleberg documenting his life, through Munin Films. Magnus, an Academy Award winner and heroin user, screened his short documentary for politicians in the Norwegian Parliament. Like many others, he tells how Methadone and Subutex haven’t worked for him and he asks the politicians to implement heroin assisted treatment.”

“Then Winnie Jørgensen (Drug User Union, Denmark) appears on a Skype Feed, answering questions about her life now that she gets heroin legally in Copenhagen.”

Amongst others in this film were: Geir Hjelmerud, Torstein Bjordal, Line Huldra Pedersen and Arild Knutsen from The Association for Humane Drug Policies. http://www.fhn.no

facebook.com/pages/Foreningen-for-human-­narkotikapolitikk

Ronnie Bjørnestad from proLAR and Borge Andersen are also profiled as fighting for drug users rights.A film by Chistoffer Næss and Per Kristian Lomsdalen, Munin Film.

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